Philip Hammial

Similitude - Poem by Philip Hammial

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If we assume that every third house is logicalit follows that there’s literature in abundanceon the subject of steamer trunks of the kindthat one might find in every fourth house. Sheopens it & pulls out a dress, probablyher grandmother’s, & puts it one, an arrangementthat’s agreeable to both parties, so agreeablein fact that suddenly there’s something that mustbe said but where are the words? – too choked upwith emotion, & the opportunity passes. It’s as though you’ve stopped at a red light on Sunset Boulevard on Saturday night & the beautiful young woman in the back seat – how did she get there? wheredid she come from? – says thanks for the ride, opensthe door & vanishes into the crowd, a somewhatfarfetched simile I’m sure you’ll agree, but since it& hundreds of other equally preposterous similescan be found in the literature far be it from meto delet it in favour of some more down-to-earthcomparison – a simile that, however outlandish,seems perfectly suited to a situation, this situation,where there’s sure to be someone in every fifth housewho will be prepared to argue that it perfectly conveyswhat the author intended it to convey.